The Purpose of My Life
by animexpert-Shizen
Summary: AU. On this Earth, there are several kingdoms. Citizens of each holding special abilities. Tension builds and builds between the Fire and Ice Kingdoms until finally the Prince Emil is kidnapped; his big brother must save him from the clutches of Mathias the Ruthless. In reality, no one is entirely evil, yet that's hard to realize when all you ever see is sadness and betrayal.
1. Rescue and Agreement

This one is for my buddy Julia :D hey gurl! LOVE YOUUUUU! Some minor notes here, blood I guess, I don't own hetalia, and if I use blonde, instead of blond, to describe a guy, I'm sorry, it's a force of habit.

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Flames lashed out and whipped around his ankles.  
But the knight carried on.  
Smoke wafted up into the air and he inhaled the fumes.  
But the Knight carried on.  
His horse fell and his supplies dwindled to near nothing in the Hellish terrain of the Fire Kingdom.  
But the knight carried on.  
This warrior, sent from the Kingdom of Ice, had one mission and one thing on his mind alone.  
His goal was clear-cut, this feathery platinum blond was assigned the task of saving the Prince of his monarchy.  
The journey to the castle had posed only a bit of a challenge for this skilled individual. His sleek yet muscular body was perfect for dodging every obstacle that was thrown his way, and his handsome face was great for getting information from the village women.  
Everyone in the Ice Kingdom knew Nikolai as the best swordsman around. It was almost a bit of a surprise when he discovered he was no one to the Fire Kingdom. From the secret poison laced weapon that was his cross barrette, to his actual Norman sword, the blue eyed man always had a trump card. Word had it that his dulled orbs would pierce you shortly before the tip of his sharp weapon.  
As an experienced swordsman, he was the first person the cold king, a menace-emanating man (who was actually and okay person) turned to when he found out by his squire, a Mr. Tino as he recalled, screaming to him the scene that his small adopted brother Peter had seen earlier that day. The prince was out in the garden collecting flowers, peonies to be exact, for his Kaoru, when all of a sudden a man with similar colored hair and crimson eyes appeared. His dirty-blonde blue-eyed companion joined him and dragged off the royal teen, all while Peter hid in the bushes.  
The knight knew what he was being sent to do the moment his Sire spoke the words "the prince has recently been kidnapped..." And he knew that he would hear at the end "and don't let the Fire King live."  
So here he was.  
Soon, he made his way to the building, seemingly constructed from ashes and charcoal. Laying a hand on his hilt, he blinked emotionlessly and charged to the structure, ready to kick some major ass.  
However, he wasn't the only famous player in this game.  
Anticipating someone's, not anyone specific but someone's, arrival, the King of Embers had everything planned out.  
"Now now little one don't squirm." He turned to his captured boy of royalty and smirked. The silver-haired male just writhed more, trying to free himself from the ropes that held him tightly to a large marble pole-like structure. The fragile figure had been tied there for nearly a day now, awaiting rescue. He stated how dishonorable this was and how he'd rather be thrown into the pit of magma or lava or whatever the hell they called it here than endure another hour of standing aimlessly with his hands behind his back.  
Mathias the Ruthless just ran a hand through his blonde flame-like hair and his wry smile grew larger.  
"Quiet now," he would say every time Prince Emil would finish a sentence. "Quiet now."  
"He'll be arriving soon." Was the very last line he spoke before the sound of his guard screaming right outside his door resonated through his grand hall, nearly quaking his throne.  
Suddenly the entrance was thrown open, revealing those stabbing eyes.  
"Brother!" The prince's lips almost twitched into a smile as Nikolai waltzed over to the rock he was fastened to.  
"Now, now let's not get ahead of ourselves." Mathias rose from his glorious seat and drew his own blade, barely noticeable under the folds of his wondrous robes. "I'd suggest for you to surrender." He was a picture, all in all. A long blood-red cape flowed from his figure, a well built man with golden shoulder plates and breast plates guarding the life-sustaining areas. Strangely enough, that was the only armor he had on his entire body. He also wore grey baggy-legged pants that tucked into two black boots. And as a top, he had a baggy shirt, matching in color to his robe and bearing an embroidered flame.  
"No chance." The ropes were cut with a clean line, and the silver-haired royalty was pushed a bit harshly out of the way of a thrust of the sword from the opponent. The king chortled before swinging at the knight, who had told Emil to run for it.  
Blades clashed and sparks flew.  
The flamed man was much stockier and muscular than his opponent. This gave him the upper-hand when their weapons smashed together, the force on both ends keeping them suspended and too close for comfort... if swords have personal space. A bit of a pushing contest ensued, and because of his bulky persona, the king exerted a large amount of force, throwing Nikolai backwards, only to crash into a pillar holding up the castle ceiling. The contact of the expensive marble onto his spine made it feel as if every bone in his body was shattering. He did not scream though, for that is weakness. He merely slid up the structure that nearly killed him and repositioned his sword.  
How can this be?!  
I'm the best swordsman in the entire Ice Kingdom Army...  
Mathias laughed. "You're still going I see. I guess some bugs are harder to squish than others. Oh well, you will die eventually." It was at this point in time that Nikolai felt a strange sensation at his chin and realized that his mouth was bleeding. He quickly wiped away the substance with the back of his hand, he would not show defeat.  
His opponent was the first to move.  
He was too late to.  
He found a large blade puncturing his left arm and bit down on his lip before countering with a swift stabbing motion, but it did little to the king and he dodged to the side. The most he managed was a graze on the back of the hot-head's leg.  
"Ah, ah, ah~ no, no, no~" the taller of the two let his face transform into a large wry grin, ignoring the minute irritation in his calf, and he shoved the blade even farther into our hero's arm. "This is my play time not yours, little soldier boy." Blood spluttered out, a beautiful squelching sound resulting from the liquid. It splashed and splattered, on its owner and it's enemy. Two ocean blue eyes flashed with mischief as this quickly became a new paint of some sorts. Soon designs were drawn onto the assassin's face, what appeared to be a sun and then a flower on either cheek. "There, arts and crafts too I suppose." The drained male panted, his face turning pale and his eyelids drooping. His legs wobbled a bit. He felt his world begin to spin.  
Blood loss  
Too much blood loss  
_At this rate I'll-  
_"NIKOLAI!" Suddenly a flash of silver hair appeared once again as Emil ran up to his brother.  
"How unexpected, the mouse has returned to the Lion's-" the muscled man was suddenly pushed to the side by the small prince as he nearly fell apart.  
"I told you to leave." A rasped, angry, yet gentle warning from the injured individual.  
"And I didn't listen." The ice-hearted swordsman sighed at the response before he gritted his teeth and painfully yanked the sword from his appendage, trying his hardest not to scream as the toothed blade ripped through his muscle. With the weapon safely out of himself, he quickly held the handle and jumped back, taking his prince with him, away from his enemy who was simply watching in amusement. He stumbled back a bit on the landing, beads of sweat dripping down his jaw line.  
"Your arm!"  
"It's nothing." Nikolai looked surprised when Emil held his injured area and began chanting something. Soon all of the blood he was losing froze outside of his body, effectively and instantaneously clotting the wound. The frozen crimson color drained until it was crystal clear, then a dim blue light illuminated the spot before the glass-like material shattered, leaving behind a mere scar.  
"So it is true what they say?" The great King of flames rose to his feet and waltzed over to the two, Emil hiding behind his brother. "Ice people with magic may heal?" From his pocket he pulled out a dagger. He looked at the engraved blade, seemingly interested in the knife alone. "I have the best aim in my country you know. It will definitely hit either you or your royal pain. And the best part is" he chortled "it's poisoned." He smirked even more "laced with venom to be exact, of the deadliest snake in the Fire Kingdom. That's something even your little wound healing won't fix. It's simple and does much more than course through your veins, it rampages through them." The prince's eyes grew wide as the spiky-haired beast seemed to take aim. "Drop your weapons" the words were taken seriously and the assassin immediately let go of his grip of the metallic items, their clanking against the ground only adding to his headache. "Good. You're an obedient one huh?" he ran a hand through his hair and thought for a second before smirking once more. "So I'll give you a choice: you or the runt, which one to keep and which one gets to leave?"  
"Emil will leave." Said teen hadn't even processed what was asked and the answer was already given, but not from his voice. In fact, as soon as he heard that he yelled at the Ember-King to let the swordsman go, not him. Nikolai gripped his wrist a bit harshly and gritted his teeth. "I told you once to leave; now I'm commanding you, understand?" The tone was smooth and polished even in times of crisis. "However, you must ensure his safe return to his kingdom." Cobalt eyes latched onto the king's, and a sly smile graced Mathias's features.  
"Of course. That wouldn't be fair to keep both or kill of you, how boring and cliché." He chuckled before pointing to the Ice Prince with the hand not gripping the dagger handle. "No, I'm not that old-fashioned. Instead, I want you to go back to your kingdom and tell them just how much of a bitch I am and jut how badly you hate me." He outright laughed, "Tell them about me breaking you Ice-Bastards' façade, and how you started freaking out. I'm sure they will laugh just as much as I."  
"You're sick!"  
"And you're leaving. Alfred, Gilbert." With a snap of his fingers, two figures emerged from behind the throne, a clever hiding spot for the King's most trusted guards. Emil recognized them from the garden incident. The albino hoisted him up while the dirty blonde hit a pressure point on the back of his neck, effectively knocking the boy out.  
"Until next time, my little Frosted Flake."  
"Be gentle with him!" Nikolai growled as the two men left with the boy in their arms.


	2. Doll

I feel that Denmark is OOC. OHHHH WELLLLLL. Throughout this I think I'm trying to convey he's a bit bipolar in a sense? MEH?! It'll come together eventually… I think? It's due to a back story thing. _Isn't everything in anime~? _Maybe. It's a possibility. Also, I'm giving up genderifying (NEW WORD) hair colors sorry for grammar lovers :/

Also, I LOVE _Italics _

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"Oh calm down, no one here you need to impress little man." The taller of the two remaining individuals issued for the warrior to come to him. He had to do this twice then threatened to call his minions back before the weathered being came to the side of his throne. He sat down once more on his gorgeous chair of royalty and gave a good scan of the cold-hearted prisoner. "I'm guessing that not only stopped blood loss, but restored it... just by the way you're standing upright still... Don't even think of running. I'll tell my guards and they'll be sure to make your little prince suffer." Suddenly a larger grin nearly, but not quite, split his face in half. "And hey, you're kind of cute. Why don't you be my doll?" A small eyebrow twitch was all the frozen face would let pass and Mathias was having a good time by now. "I'm absolutely serious. We'll dress you up in the latest fashions and do your hair and you can wear my old cloaks and uniforms-"  
"Absolutely not." And then suddenly a frown, which was possibly the most surprising thing the feather-haired male had seen all day.  
"Listen, you don't understand, I can clap my hands and my men will slit your precious… what was it? Emil's neck. I really suggest you don't say anymore and do as I command." A few seconds of silence passed, and turned into minutes. Eventually, Nikolai had to voice his mind.  
"Your henchman will be caught you know. Our security is tight. They'll be caught and killed."  
"Not necessarily," Mathias stood and began dusting off his robes, "they'll drop him off at the nearest place that gives shipments to the Ice Kingdom," he inspected a small splotch of red on his arm before chuckling then making eye contact with his captive again, "probably at the Water Palace or something. A man I know named Antonio lives there. He's Gilbert's close friend and an okay guy. I'm sure he'll help." He was seated once more and then began to think.  
If he has a brain. The assassin silently insulted.  
"Hmm, yes, I think you'd look best in dark blue." If only he hadn't let go of those swords and if only this man didn't have poison on him.  
Poison...  
Poison!  
That's it! He thought back to his lethal barrette and devised a plan. That night, when he was able to get away from the king, he would prick himself and inject the toxin into him, effectively ending his life without pain.  
"What about this?" Suddenly the swordsman was woken up from his inner thoughts and observed a royal servant with short blonde hair and emerald eyes handing him a pristine navy blue sailor outfit complete with brown boots and a hat.  
"Here you go sir." He resisted the urge to strangle the king... And the servant who bore a cat-like smile. And then he looked closely at her and raised a brow.  
"Don't I know your brother?" He was answered with a blink and a laugh.  
"Aww, so he's still in the Ice Kingdom is he? That's okay. If you ever get out of here alive tell him I miss him okay~?" And with that she ran off leaving him with the clothing.  
"... I'm not putting this on."  
"Yes you are."  
"No."  
"C'mon~ you know you want to. I bet that leather armor and cloak is really hot, they're nice and cool and clean~" Nikolai contemplated this for a bit before turning to walk away. "Where are you headed little doll?"  
"... To change..."  
"No," a smirk, "just change right there."  
The Ice-kingdom citizen bit his bottom lip in effort to not absolutely tear the king to shreds. "Very well." So off with the large slightly bulky cloak and then next came the thick animal hide cloth shirt. Both items resulted in a resonating thump as they hit the ground. The king wolf whistled and the assassin just satisfied his need for stabbing with thinking about it.  
In great detail.  
Footsteps and the dragging of heavy cloth, a robe of sorts, on the floor was heard and the warrior turned around and raised an eye brow at the approaching king.  
"What do-"  
"Your face is still dirty with my art." The taller grinned in response before licking his thumb and rubbing it on the shocked man's cheek. "We can't have you go out like this you'll scare all the kids away!" Nikolai was just stunned, and kind of disgusted. Mathias then licked his other thumb and repeated the process with the opposite side of the swordsman's face. "Hmm... Let's see, still not off..." The man just licked the Ice Kingdom citizen's cheek directly. "Not bad." He chuckled and Nikolai seemed to finally come to his senses. He jumped five feet back and for every one step the king took towards him, he went two in the other direction.  
"I am perfectly capable of cleaning myself." Mathias laughed and nodded.  
"Of course you are. I know that." He smiled, in a feigned sweetness, the innocent happiness of a small child. "I just don't care."  
"Well you should." More laughter from the idiotic king.  
"Very well, very well." That wicked snapping sound and another servant soon appeared at the door.  
"You called sir?" The nervous brunette had dirt staining his cheeks and clothing.  
"Wash this man off. He seems to have a problem with me doing it."  
"Of course sir." Toris, as the king addressed the servant, brought a cold cloth to Nikolai's skin and smiled as the water began taking away the markings.  
"So you're stuck here too?" His eyes spoke sympathetically to the prisoner who nodded in response. "It gets better." This time it was a faint whisper carried from the man's lips.  
"What was that?" The king demanded suspiciously.  
"I said he's all better." And true enough, he was completely clean. He'd be the first one to admit that bathing wasn't exactly easy when you're traveling every day and every night for a good while in a dessert environment, so the cool water was a great relief, and his smooth pale skin was once again it's beautiful self.  
"Ah, good, good, you can leave now." The subordinate bowed quickly then scampered off.  
"That man was of the Earth Lands? To the East?"  
"Impressive, you know your stuff." The king snickered and nodded. "Yes, he's another one of my captives. You actually have it lucky, seeing as how I chose you as my doll and all."  
I'd hardly call it luck...  
"Whatever, leave me to my dressing." And then Nikolai began working on his belt.  
A small smack resonated through the empty halls.  
_The king had not..._  
Oh, but he did! Yes, the shameless ruler of burns and ashes had just slapped a warrior's ass, and an enemy's at that!  
"You sick..." The slightly blushing blonde prevented himself from speaking his mind, as his entire motive for existing right now was to wait until Emil was safely home then kill himself with what little pride he had left.  
"What was that~?" Matias purred into his prisoner's ear and said man resisted the urge to yelp when he felt his posterior being _groped_ of all things.  
_Almost forgot, stab the king, then kill myself.  
_"Nothing." He growled.  
"'Nothing, my lord' you mean."  
"No. I don't mean that."  
"Say it~."  
"No." The eccentric ruler sighed and snapped his fingers before stepping away from the blonde. His mind was made. It was time to make a point.  
"Oh little birdie~" The, now familiar, sound of the large door opening before a man with a grey fedora and a matching pristine pinstripe suit walked in, a reddish tint to his hair, with a curl protruding from the top right of his head.  
"You called bastard?" A glint of a rifle handle shined out of the gun holster on his right hip and Nikolai bit his bottom lip. It was quite obvious that this man alone could kill Emil, and it was also given that he was a boss of some sort. He could, judging by his hardened gaze, order a death without blinking.  
"Nothing my lord..." The normally anything-but-obedient man suddenly grumbled, much to his captor's delight.  
"Good," he turned to his 'bird,' "and you can leave Lovino."  
"Whatever. Will you stop calling me every fucking time you just want to intimidate some damn" The moody male waltzed out, hands in his pockets, mouth running on, and chin jutting up in the air, as if he hadn't just seen his ruler standing much to close to a random undressing male. Then again, it may be that he didn't truly care. A large creak and bang echoed as the man opened then slammed the entrance closed.  
"Did you honestly not believe me? I have bombs, blades, and guns in the palm of my hand." The assassin was silent.  
"You _are _really cute you know, but you should finish dressing so I can go out and parade you around." So the man begin pulling his pants off, then the new ones up, and then slipped his shirt on over his slim form, finishing off with the boots.  
"Good now wear the funny hat." Said dark blue sailor accessory was applied to his head by the king himself. "And you won't be needing this dumb thing." He went to grab our hero's barrette when said stoic male grasped his wrist.  
"No." Mathias did no more than blink indifferently before sighing.  
_Shit  
_"Do I need to call my hit man in again~?"  
_Excuses... Excuses...  
_"My bangs cover my face." Nikolai demonstrated his meaning to the confused royalty by removing the hair clip and, as he said, stray hairs fell in front of his eyes, shielding his view. He pulled the blonde curtain apart in the middle to reveal the two pools of navy on stage, and found a chuckling fool in the audience.  
"You look so... Adorable." He burst out laughing and the icy knight could feel the urge to snap his neck rushing through his fingers. He quickly put the pin back into his hair and began walking away from the king.  
"Wait, where are you going?!"  
"Where ever you want me to I suppose." The pert reply only conjured more snickers.  
"What a good little pet~." The coo was like an arrow shot right into Nikolai's heart. It burned in his stomach, igniting a pit of fathomless rage. A sense of-  
"Come on my Lemming! Let us be off!" The lightning pulsating through his veins ceased, as if it were as surprised as the warrior, who merely managed to sputter a fragment.  
"Your _what_?!"


	3. New Pet Name

If you haven't noticed by now Norway is called Nikolai in this fic~ why? Cause I like the name… so does the person to whom this is dedicated so there :D I'll give you a real reason in that story right down there so calm yourself~ ;3

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"Lemming! You know? Those adorable little mouse-like things! I thought they were popular pets from where you live..." That electricity died in Nikolai, and it seemingly drained. Now a sense of something slow, oil perhaps, began filling his bloodstream, telling him to calm down because this imbecile wasn't worth it. He began walking towards town, Mathias following closely behind him."Have you ever had a pet lemming? Ooo~ you should catch me one! We can take care of it together! We could call it Shirley or maybe something weird like Xavier or Ophela! It would be funny if we named it your name then called you Lemming... Um... What is your name again, my pet?" The assassin clenched his fists at his sides and gritted his teeth. With a click of the tongue to the front of his mouth and a deep breath, a technique his deceased mother had showed him, his anger lessened...  
A bit.  
"My name is Nikolai."  
"Nickel eye?" Suddenly a sword was tossed to the assassin. He looked over to the ruler with confusion, but the other simply smiled back, and then the man knew of the consequences if he did anything this royal pain didn't like.  
"No, Ni-Ko-Lai." Mathias blinked and scratched his head before laughing as the shorter sheathed his sword, immediately knowing of his new job.  
"Oh I know! ...Isn't that a cough medicine?"  
"THAT'S RICOLA!" The swordsman covered his mouth, eyes widening a bit, surprised anyone could piss him off so much that he would yell of all things.  
"Hey don't take your anger out on me just because you have a weird name." Yet the king didn't seem to mind at all. He was probably used to people yelling at him, if his very own hit-man acted the way he did. He ran a bit ahead of his captive and then kicked the door, out of pure boredom. The wooden structure flew open, well as quickly as about 100 pounds of wood could fly on oversized rusted iron hinges.  
"I actually like the name." And Nikolai literally felt the words leave his mouth, he never once wanted then too. This guy could make him mad, and make him talk, a very, _very_ bad combination.  
"Really? Is that because your mommy gave it to you~?" The spiky-haired individual teased as his companion picked up the pace to keep up with him.  
"Actually I gave it to myself."  
_Stop speaking  
Stop speaking  
_"Hmm? Really, do tell? Did you jump out of your mother's stomach proclaiming your title to the world?" Mathias suddenly seemed a bit interested in him... Or maybe he was just a douche bag; it was hard to tell. He quirked a brow before turning to a fruit stall, face immediately brightening. He picked up an orange and then dug inside his pockets, depositing a silver coin in exchange for the wonderful food before continuing to walk on, leaving behind a shocked merchant.  
"..." Nikolai spared a glance backwards to the now dancing individual before turning back to the king. "No."  
"Then what?"  
_Don't say anything._

_But if I don't talk he might grow agitated and take it out by having Emil killed…_  
"Well I'm actually the son of the deceased king, King Nikolai III, but he died of sickness so afterwards his brother took over the throne and then my half brother, Emil, was born to King Lukas IV." He took a small piece of orange that the taller man offered him and ate it in one bite before continuing, but only because puppy-like stares were sent to him, "Thing was, I originally was named after my uncle. He never did like me though, and by my fifth birthday he demanded I changed my name, so I did."  
"So you'll be King Nikolai the fourth?"  
"No, I won't." The reply was sharp, and had a precise pierce. "Ever hear a 'Prince' in front of my name?"  
"Oh, so the king replaced you with your half brother even though you were older and then wouldn't let you be in the royal family?" Mathias looked around for a place to dispose of his peel.  
"Yeah, but justice was still served in the end. After my mother died of Tuberculosis, Lukas IV was assassinated and the King Berwald, his close friend, took over. He told the kingdom that Emil would still be ruler one day. He then also promoted me to head knight of the army."  
"Whoa, hold up, since when were you in the army?" Nikolai actually had to think for a moment.  
"Well I think I'm two or three years older than Emil. And he was seven at the time..."  
"You don't even know your own age?" The ruler of flames sighed and then another question knocked at his brains. "So wait, why didn't you just knock little Emil off his block? You know, send him to a dirt bed? You would have been king then."  
"Listen, my brother did not ask to be born. He's been nothing but good to me. The real question is why _would I_?" The cold man silently observed as Mathias walked up behind some poor fellow that was, unluckily, wearing a hood, and deposited his garbage silently there before continuing on. Alas, he had to finish his story; the ruler's eyes demanded it. "...My intentions will never change. My whole purpose in this world is to see to it that my brother receives the throne then guard his life with mine when the time comes."  
"And after that?" The younger of the two raised a brow, staring up at his elder. "You can't honestly say you'd be happy just living like that."  
_Happy?_  
"Why should it matter either way?" The taller man flat out laughed at Nikolai, in the midst of all these people. He put a large, soft hand atop the assassin's head and messed up his hair, almost as if he were truly a pet.  
"You're as loyal as a dog and as cute as a lemming, how sweet." Suddenly, the pissed man's eyes widened and he pushed Mathias onto a poor cloth stand. The weight of the man and the velocity at which he was traveling shattered the cart and the wares flew every which way. If it weren't for the fact that he had a spool of thread in his mouth, the shaken royalty would have definitely been yelling at his subordinate by now. He spat out the coil: a cloth pasta of sorts, disgustingly peeling away a strand that found his tongue a rather nice place to stay.  
"Damn it, what in the-" The fuming ruler turned to his captive, ready to lose it, when he noticed that the soldier had unsheathed his sword and was currently in a duel with a much stronger and more built man. The slimmer of the fighters was agile enough to dodge every swing of the khopesh that his enemy showed great skill in using. The light, hook-like weapon stood no chance again the experienced fighter's Norman. Dodging the usual side-swings associated to the sword took only a small duck, step backwards, or swerve in the same direction the sword was flying, just out of reach and just a bit faster. Nikolai ducked, as a particularly high aim was executed. From the ground, he saw his opportunity. A small slide in the curved region of his foe's blade, a yank up, and then the attack and defense mechanism flew through the air, landing safely on the ground, away from any bystanders. A longsword was then at the offender's Adam's apple.  
"State your business." Before now the mysterious man had a large amount of cloth covering his face. It wasn't that odd around these parts, it was a desert after all.  
But now, the dirty white fabric was almost completely gone, his head weighing down the material, leaving his hair, eyes, mouth, and nose visible. A familiar golden gaze was put onto our dear assassin and he bit his lower lip. He knew exactly who this was and exactly what their intention was.  
Gupta Muhammad Hassan. Mission- Kill the king. Possibly kill or bring home safely the missing soldier, Nikolai.  
It was explained to him before he left that he may receive back up.  
No emotion was shown by either man, but Ice Kingdom citizens know how to read each others' feelings like a book.  
"I'm sorry." Nikolai's sent undetected sympathy.  
"It's okay."  
"They sent reinforcements?"  
"Shortly after you left I set out with the intention of assisting you if need be."  
"I see."  
Mathias the Great watched this _silent_ conversation with confusion. All of a sudden they stopped staring and started talking.  
"They died you know." The one wielding a sword raised a brow at this remark. This time it was out loud too. All in one moment, it hit him what this man meant.  
"So that's why you were off of your game?"  
"Yes." These Ice people! They spoke in fucking riddles! Or at least, they did in the king's mind.  
"And you have nothing to live for now?" Nikolai added softly.  
"It would be like you losing Emil. They're like family to me. Now they're both dead. Died on duty." He blinked before following up with "I'll die too. Be tortured and die after you let me go." A small smile worked its way on the tan man's face. "Nik, I do believe your king is frustrated." And when the blonde turned to the spiky-haired powerhouse, he saw that the ruler was all but pulling out his hair. He cleared his throat, in order not to laugh, and turned back to the fellow Ice-Kingdom citizen.  
"...You could find someone else. You could look after Emil for me." And suddenly Gupta narrowed his eyes a bit, in an angry and sad sense of understanding. He shook his head and before Nikolai could say any more, his boss shouted at him to finish the man off already.  
A flash of apologetic navy eyes was the last thing the tanned assassin ever saw.

Our dear swordsman bent down, sitting on one knee and slowly closed both open eyelids of his former ally. His vision spoke again and again that he was sorry, even if he knew no answer would come and nothing would be seen or heard. The blood dripping and soaking the man's clothes proved that.  
"Very good Lemming." Nikolai stood and wanted nothing more but to strangle this man walking towards him, but he didn't, for Emil's sake.

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Okay some notes to end things off here too!

Firstly, that man would be Egypt.

The people who died would be Turkey and Greece. For now, we're all gonna assume that he was very close to them in this AU, kay? (Go with it please TTuTT)

And a khopesh is a pretty epic looking Egyptian weapon. Won't lie, I googled up Egyptian sword :D I mean, don't get me wrong, learning about weapons (especially swords) is one of my favorite things to do (I have no life) but my knowledge isn't that large (Wish it was)


	4. Lemmings

I feel as if I rushed Norway's story in there to quickly. Mehhhhhhhhhh oh well. If we use animes an example, the main character's backstory is usually explained, or at least the basics are, before anyone else's.

Short chapter is short, sorry. Just thought it would be a good way to break it all up.

Fragments fragments fragments. I UNDERSTAND Microsoft Word! STOP YELLING AT MY GRAMMAR!

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A few hours had passed. Nikolai respectfully watched as his comrade's, no wait, as his former comrade's body was taken away. A simple white sheet was tied onto two large sticks, providing a make-shift stretcher. It was soon dabbed red with a collection of damp rose petals, ready to dry up in the sweltering sun. The same rose petals that pump through our veins, and that keep us alive.  
Gupta didn't need them anymore.  
Our blonde hero turned to his captor with an icy fire engulfing his eyes, leaving the rest of his whole face void of emotion. "Do you do this often?" His question was answered with a confused look. "Walk around like an idiot, a living target for whoever has a vendetta for you?" And with that the swordsman coldly turned on his heel and began waltzing away from the man he hated most.

Back at the palace, Nikolai felt it would be best if he were as far away from the king as possible.  
But of course _his 'highass'_ demanded that his new doll and bodyguard be merely one room to his right. How he hated that individual with a passion. What this author didn't tell you is that on the way back to the castle, the flame-headed male had flirted with about fifty girls, the last turning out to be another assassin and another kill on Nikolai's growing list.  
Such a pretty face too, what a shame.  
Honestly, this man succeeded in causing the dear 'lemming' mental turmoil.  
Speaking of the adorable animal, the king also ordered that the respected and amazingly strong swordsman downgrade to a simple Animal Control Officer. And not just any regular stray dog catcher, no, he simply had to find one single species.

The feathery blonde thought rather murderous notions as he carried a covered cage back to the large charred structure that the king called home.  
"'Catch me a lemming,' he said" Nikolai mumbled quietly to himself as he kicked up the dust in this giant sandbox of a town. "Too bad they only live in northern climates."  
He remembered the incident a few minutes ago with a rather irritated sigh. He had to bargain with a rather stingy merchant just to buy the last collared lemming in their collection. The disgusting man, with a rather bushy mustache, and large stomach to rival with that of a cow's, had nagged him and urged him to pay more than he offered as his maximum. However, he had only his own money on him, nothing more, and nothing less. Not to mention Ice currency wasn't as strong as the Fire dollars... That and the Ice and Fire Kingdoms rather abhor one another, so trading with them got even worse. Eventually he managed to... _persuade_ the man into giving him a 100% discount.  
Who said threats never get you anywhere?  
"You're more trouble than your worth." Nikolai lifted the thin white fabric from the cage and examined the animal. The creature stirred from its slumber and blinked at the man before scurrying to the part of the cage where an empty and chipped teacup lay. He then pawed at the porcelain surface. The king's doll stopped walking and observed the creature's desperate look. He silently gazed at the cup before realizing what the lemming meant. He set the cage down on a section of a stone walkway and opened the top of the little lemming dwelling, pouring a bit of the water he kept in his pouch into the specimen's 'bowl.' The mammal immediately started to lap up the substance, then actually took a dip in the liquid.  
/It must be scorching for him.../ Nikolai picked the cage back up and shut the opening before trudging back to his idiotic boss. "I guess we're one in the same, huh? Maybe Mathias got something right." And with this he stopped dead in his tracks. Someone behind him knocked right into his back before shouting at him. Nikolai didn't bother to comprehend the words. "Him?" He suddenly said. The man who ran into him stopped and raised a brow, obviously confused. "As if he could get anything right!"  
"Are you trying to start something punk?!" The rather muscular individual threw a fist, which unsurprisingly, the experienced fighter caught with ease, even of it was thrown from behind.  
One hand holding that of the opposing.  
Another holding the cage.  
Two cobalt daggers pierced the offending man's gaze before an utterance of "What?" came from the awfully terrifying swordsman. The rather rude man learned his lesson when icy flames engulfed his soul, freezing fire coming from the stare. The tight grip on his fist loosened and he ran like hell, leaving two "lemmings" to dwell on their thoughts.  
One thinking of grains and water.  
The other thinking about the difference between idiocy and intelligence.

* * *

Anyone up for Norway's new nickname being Lemming? They're so f-ing cute that I can't even swear and type "lemmings" in the same sentence.

I wanted to use the Norwegian lemming originally, but ya know, no Norway here. That wouldn't make sense (although 'frosted flake' and 'Ricola' don't exactly fit into this time period either but shhhhhh). A fun fact about the Norwegian lemming is that everyone used to think that they commited large scale suicide together as part of their life cycle. They would drown themselves in a large body of water. This theory was only supported further by a Canadian documentary that showed Lemmings 'jumping' off of a cliff and landing in water below. In reality, the makers of the documentary shot them off turntables e.o oh Canada….

Either way, they really do die by drowning often, but it's coincidence. Often, they have to cross bodies of water but sometimes several lemmings won't make it to the other side of the lake/river/stream/ what-have-you.

**And that concludes today's lemming fun fact.**


	5. That's Not a Bug

Traveling to the Water Palace from the Fire kingdom, or vice versa for that matter, was no easy feat. In fact, it was a longer distance away than the Ice Kingdom.  
Nikolai knew that.  
It was time consuming, frustrating, freezing, and scorching.  
He _knew_ that.  
But after two days of Mathias, he was about ready to tear apart a map and glue the two nations together.  
When he got home the first day, carrying the lemming, the king nearly strangled him in a bear hug. He took the rodent and rushed to his room, where Nikolai was forced to go as well. Here he witnessed several servants scurrying more than rats as they put together a miniature town for the new pet. A large circular stone wall, one inch thick surrounded the residence that was divided into three sections:  
One was supposed to be a downsized lake, as Mathias explained, and held little fish at the bottom that were actually just carved from blocks of cheese. It was about five inches deep.  
The swordsman just hoped lemmings could swim.  
The second section was a large pile of dirt and leaves, looking rather uncleanly in comparison to the third section, which was an elaborate play ground built for the mouse-like creature. It held every rodent toy available, and on top of that it had small miniature houses, built to scale and including different floors, all of which had large windows so that you could see inside and watch the little critter to from room to room. The mini-wall was three feet high, as lemmings were craftily little pets whom were smart enough to escape almost anything. When the king looked at the 15ft in diameter "cage" he grinned and then, eyes glistening like a child's, pointed to the dirt pile, asking what it was for. Toris answered that it was there so that the lemming had somewhere to burrow into, and the ruler of one of the most feared kingdoms in the entire world, nearly broke his servant's spine when he wrapped his arms around the shorter and squeezed in affection and pure giddy glee. As soon as the wall was finished, and was let to dry, Mathias the Great let his new little friend explore the home. At first, the rodent sprinted to the dirt pile, digging itself a little home, and an escape from these odd people.  
Nikolai was rather envious.  
The swordsman looked to his king and raised a brow as the man just watched in anticipation. He turned his gaze back to the dwelling of the animal and sighed before sitting down on his knees, and resting his arms on the wall, staring intently at the place of disappearance. He stayed there for a good 30 minutes, occasionally stealing a glance at Mathias. He felt fatigue slowly overcoming his mind. His newly created scar began to ache, choosing just now to make its presence known. The Ice Kingdom native dug his nails into his arm, as if it would distract his throbbing shoulder. Despite the two sources of considerable pain, he felt his eyelids grow heavy. His breathing slowed and calmed as sleep began to wrap its warm arms around his body, putting it in a state of absolute relaxation. A few languid blinks later, one last peek at the overly zealous king, and a blurry thought somewhere along the lines of "why the hell was I the only servant that stayed with him?" led him into a deep slumber.  
He really wishes he could tell you that it was the best he had ever gotten, that he had a pleasant dream, plenty of rest, and woke up feeling better that he ever had in his life.  
He'd like to say that, but that truth is that he had slept for about ten minutes before the king shouting his name, caused him to jump fifty feet in the air and he stumbled backwards, off his center of balance, crashing his spine off of the marble floors of the king's quarters. He then let out an indignant squeak as his head knocked up against the wall. However, even this wasn't enough to keep the newly "hired" guard dog down; he hopped up, running to his master's side while clutching the back of his head with one hand, the other grasping the handle of his sword.  
"What is it?!" He grit his teeth as he surveyed his surroundings. A calm, peaceful room. The same one he had fallen asleep in.  
Nothing had changed.  
In fact, Mathias looked up to his standing servant with a confused face.  
Absolutely nothing was wrong.  
"What are you doing up lemming? I thought you were taking a nap?" He slowly felt chains called self-restraint wrapped around his arms as he resisted the urge to strangle the king.  
"You said my name." Was all he could manage, tapping his fingers on the sheath of his sword, hoping to district himself.  
"Oh! No I was talking to him!" The spiky haired fool then held up his adorable little rodent pet. "I named him Nikolai remember? And you're Lemming!" The soft smile made the assassin want to plunge a dagger into the man's eye.  
"_Of course_." then the king grinned and handed him the mouse-like animal.  
"Here, he's really soft and cuddly! As soon as you fell asleep he came out of his hiding place and let me pet him! He's so cute and loves to nibble on your fingers; it really tickles!" The man droned on and on as Nikolai observed the other Nikolai in his palm.  
He had to admit... It was kind of-  
A puddle soon formed in his hand and it took everything in his power to not gut the lemming then and there.  
Needless to say that day was probably the worst in his entire life.  
The next day was just confusing.  
It started with him getting no sleep, as he spent the entirety of the night either trying to get his hands to stop smelling of urine, or catering to whatever the king or his damn pet wanted. However, no sleep was something the assassin was already accustomed to. Difficult missions often came down to the fact of: you blink and you're dead. Not to mention he was running on anger, which processed in his body and was released in an air of indifference.  
It continued with Mathias gushing over his new pet as he made his "doll" dress up in ridiculous outfits. Dozens of outfits, everything from dresses to old king wear, adorned the swordsman's body in less than two hours. He began to wonder if he killed himself right then if they would spare Emil. Or maybe he was already home again? Then again, dying of embarrassment seemed highly likely as the Ice Kingdom's best warrior was forced to spin around in a flowing navy blue ball gown. He was allowed to stop only so he could adjust his white silk gloves. The halt gave opportunity to the rather joyful king, as he swooped in front of his servant, grabbing his hand, intertwining their fingers, and then placing his other hand on the base of the shorter man's back.  
"Dance with me." Was all that he said before twirling around the room, muttering numbers Nikolai didn't bother to comprehend, as he was too focused on not stepping on the ruler's, or his own, feet. Nonexistent music guided their movements, leading them into a waltz. This was something the warrior never bothered to learn, as dancing wasn't really the most effective way to slay an enemy. The icy man began to panic as Mathias picked up the speed. The king secretly enjoyed seeing the paranoia on the small male's face, albeit he knew it was probably a mere fraction of the true nervousness the petite assassin felt. He threw his head back and laughed happily at the sight.  
"W-What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing~" The flame-headed male chuckled and brought their dance to an end, bowing to the 'lady' and politely kissing her hand, only for Nikolai to yank his fingers away from the man's grasp. Denmark scoffed before once again petting his servant's head, just like yesterday in the market. "You know," He began with a soft smile, "I know you hate me and that I have an awesome new pet but," two shades of blue locked: one, dark as the depths of the ocean, the other, worthy of sitting on a throne in the skies, "you'll always be my favorite lemming." The swordsman's embarrassment was only worsened when Mathias noticed something.

"Ah! Hold still! There's a bug right by your face." And he clapped, smashing something that was… well floating near Nikolai's head at least. Suddenly the warrior bit down on his bottom lip and dug his fingers into his king's shoulders. The small figure shuddered when the ruler, surprised to say the least, slowly slid his hands off of the odd object. "Are you afraid of bugs?" a head shake no and the king just looked bewildered at the curled yellow object, floating, yet seemingly projecting from Nikolai's hair. "Oh! Wait!" He tugged twice on the object, the shorter blonde lowering his head, feeling his legs wobble underneath him. "Lovino has a curl just like this one! Although, it's… attached… I never found out what was so special about it; I just know he tried to kill me when I tugged on it for the first time." He laughed while our poor protagonist went through some major mental and, well, _hormonal_ turmoil. "Come to think of it, I haven't touched that thing since. Well, no one would after having a gun staring back at you." He began to nonchalantly curl the ahoge with his index finger. "Hey! You should tell me what this thing does so I can tease Lovino!" Suddenly, the idle swordsman shoved the taller away, falling backwards, on his back again, actually thankful for the pain,

For it distracted from another problem.

"W-Whoa are you okay?!" The muscular leader of an entire kingdom, leant down just to see if his servant was okay. Against his pride, Nikolai inhaled sharply and shook his head no again. Not even bothering to call a maid or butler, Mathias lifted his "doll" up and left the room, heading straight for the Ice Kingdom native's room. Once he reached the extravagant door, he threw open the entrance, shutting it quietly behind him. "I… don't know how to treat you or what's wrong… Do you want me to get a doctor?" Another shake. "Do you want me to stay?" And Nikolai wanted to say no. He wanted to throw the stupid cause of his issue out of his quarters. He wanted to slice his throat right then and there with his "innocent" hair clip, but something inside of him overruled all that. Finally, he gave a nod and Mathias grinned, sympathy still on his face. "Good! For a second I thought you hated me or something." He smiled sheepishly. The swordsman forced himself to focus on something other than the king, and settled for the room he was it. It was anything but simple. A floor made of pure silver with white walls, each decorated with several hand-painted daisies all over them. The assassin noticed that the bed sheets he was laying on also had the flower dotting their light blue surfaces. Many pieces of ebony furniture decorated the room, a large vanity right across from the bed. When Nikolai turned to face himself in the mirror, he noticed that Mathias had been not only holding his hand, but had also been rubbing it in calming circles, relaxing him and ebbing him closer to rest. It was only around five in the afternoon, but he needed to catch up on sleep anyways.

And besides, the king must be a professional at massages.

"Do you like your room?" He spoke softly, his words carrying more of Mr. Sandman's grains to Nikolai's eyes. Another nod. "I thought you would. It used to be my mom's room. She was actually my father's squire for the longest time." The smaller male looked to him through half-lidded eyes and used all of his strength to hear his ruler out. "but, then again, that's a story for another day now isn't it?" And with that, he saw nothing but black, faintly hearing a small shuffling sound as he slipped away to dreamland.

Mathias chuckled and gently kissed the "soldier boy's" temple. "Have a good rest my little lemming."

As birds chirped outside his window, and the first rays of the sun's light filtered through the glass, Nikolai stirred a bit in his rest. Cracking open one eye, the other following shortly. He then rubbed the drowsiness away from both. Suddenly memories of how _foolish _he acted the previous evening ran through his head and he groaned, swinging his feet over the side of the bed. The warrior felt a small ping in his chest when he noticed that his king had left, but just shrugged the feeling off, not willing to admit he might actually consider the man a pillar of support, as he needed none.

He peeled off the idiotic ball gown he was forced to wear, as switched into more suitable clothing. A loose short-sleeved gray shirt with a low collar, showing off his rather perfect collar bones and toned, but not overly muscular, arms. He also wore a pair of baggy pants that fell into the boots that he definitely did not grow to love (still refusing that anything Mathias supplied or suggested was good). Two knocks sounded at his door before the now familiar servant Toris walked in, carrying a large plate piled high with breakfast.

"Good Morning. I hope I'm not disturbing you." He smiled setting the tray on the nightstand.

"Not at all." Nikolai had to raise a brow after a minute of the brunette just standing there. "… Do you wish to speak to me?" The other butler stuttered then nodded.

"I just wanted to say," he gave one of the kindest faces that Nikolai had ever seen in his life, "thank you. You may not realize it but I do believe that you mean a lot to King Mathias. He's a lot happier with you around."

"Are you sure it's not just his dumb lemming?" The swordsman chuckled awkwardly, trying to avoid the subject of the king altogether. The other kept his soft expression and brought the man into a gentle embrace, hugging him softly.

"I'm sure." In some odd turn of events, at these words, Nikolai felt a smile also creep its way onto his usually emotionless face. He also found his arms encircling the other's waist, and his head resting on the servant's shoulder. He closed his eyes and tried in vain to get his smile to fade away. He couldn't help but feel loved in the place that he should feel despised the most. He felt like…

Like he finally had friends.

Unannounced to either of the men, a third stood at the door, his fiery blonde hair having a hand run through it as he bit his bottom life. The "ruthless" ruler had peeked in the crack between the door and the doorframe just in time to see his doll and his most trusted servant hugging. He felt an odd musician pulling at the strings of his heart, and abruptly turned on his heel, trying to ignore his now unsteady heartbeat. As it turns out, Nikolai wasn't the only one who wanted to rip his hair out in frustration.

* * *

Dawwwwww poor Mathias the little sweetie. This focused on the fact that Denmark is really a little darling ;D hehe and also, it had foreshadowing and hinted at Mathias's past so WOOP :D

Also, I'd like to collectively apologize for any stupid errors made in these, as I usually work on them when I'm tired, plot comes easier that way ya know?

Hopefully long enough to make up for last chapter :D


	6. Taking a Bath

A/N: GAHHH my fanfiction is PMS'ing :) :( :/ :m see? Mood swings xD can't help it can't help it! I'm sure it doesn't help that I'm listened to random things (Rotten Girl, Grotesque Romance... Alice of Human Sacrifice... The Lost One's Weeping... Hello, How are you?... Witch... Just Be Friends... Servant of Evil... Message of Regret... Daughter of Evil... Worlds End Dancehall... Kagome Kagome... etc. Ya know Vocaloid high it happens every time I have to wait for the next Professor Layton game to come out :L haha I always feel as if someone will call me a Weaboo when I talk about vocaloid :p)

* * *

_Something of my own.  
A pet.  
A doll.  
A friend.  
Anything.  
That's all I've ever wanted.  
Out of life, or anything in general.  
So why is it so hard to receive one little thing?_  
Mathias paced in his room. He circled the small imprisonment that held his rodent friend. Birds carried a cheerful tune outside as sunlight filtered gently through his stained glass windows. Images of flames and of glorious battle scenes were depicted on the colorful surface. Not a thing out of place. Not a servant out of line.  
These things usually led to the best days in the king's life.  
Right now it resembled more of a living hell.  
He aggressively ripped his orange to pieces, devouring each slice more vehemently than the last. Every one in a while he's toss a small section to his lemming, then continued to walk around the 'cage' with an aura of pure viciousness that was very _very_ unlike him.  
Why, you ask, was he beyond angry? Well, it's quite simple really.  
In a sense, someone had taken his toy.  
When a child, everyone has a favorite little figurine, or plush animal, maybe even a set of wooden blocks that is his or her absolute favorite. Anyone could recall yelling a sibling, friend, or stranger for even touching the item without asking. The rage someone feel, consuming his or her small naive soul, the overwhelming urge to kick and punch, all have been through it. All can relate to the irate king. Although, it is rather strange that a man his age, twenty-two years to be exact, would be throwing such a temper tantrum.  
But he has his reasons, as all of us do, for his behavior and actions.

No one would claim ownership of _his _doll, of _his _pet, of _his _Nikolai.  
"You… are mine, aren't you?" The faint whisper lingered in the air, waiting shakily for a reply that couldn't possibly ever come. Suddenly his own words crashed right into his heart. "Aren't you?!" This time he screamed, like the child he mentally was. "Aren't you?! Aren't you?!" The pet retreated back into its burrow, scared of his owner's sudden outburst. The door opened, revealing two of his _favorite_ servants.  
Nikolai Bondevik and Toris Laurinaitis.  
A sudden plan clicked in his brain, lemmings on hamster wheels running like no tomorrow.  
"What is it your highness?" The brunette smiled delicately while the blonde to his side kept a completely straight face, unreadable. The air grew tenser and tenser as the talkative king failed to give an answer. To be truthful, he was too busy in the recedes of his minds, adding wood to the quickly burning flames: fire that gently licked his wrists and ankles, binding him with the iron shackles that were left on the skin instead of scars. A quick "sir?" from his servant awoke him from his daydreaming.  
"Oh nothing, just joking with Nikolai here." Suddenly, the true Nikolai's brows furrowed in skepticism.  
"Of course, I'm sorry for interrupting then. Is there anything you'd wish of us?"  
"No."  
"Very well."  
_Then again…_

"Wait, Lemming, on second thought, go take a bath you smell awful," the slightly insulted face that greeted his words was almost comical. He would have laughed if it weren't for the fact that it would have come out in evil cackles. "Go, and Toris, you stay." A slightly curious glance from the swordsman prompted him for a reason, not that he _needed _to give one, he was the king after all. "I need help cleaning out the cage."  
And with that, Nikolai left, still thoroughly confused.

* * *

He wandered down the corridor, gears shifting in his head with such ferociousness he began to find himself a bit dizzy, over thinking the whole situation.  
"It's probably nothing," he decided, doubt lacing his whispered declaration. Either way, if he returned with so much as a speck of dust on him, the king would probably raise a fit, so it was off to the restroom with him.  
Upon entering the bathroom, Nikolai took a quick glance into the mirror.  
He could see why Mathias wanted him clean. That's what living in a damned desert did to you.  
There were a few pots, filled with well water, already prepared for use, except for one small thing. He glanced around the room; no woodpile, stove, oven, nothing.  
With a sigh, he remembered something.  
_It is the Fire Kingdom after all._  
Everyone was trained the special, yet simplistic, technique that was genetically present in the kingdom. It was an easy task in which you focused all of your energy in one part of your body, transforming it into high temperatures without burning the skin. Commonly, citizens of the kingdom would have no trouble at all with the task that presented itself to Nikolai, as even most _youngsters_ knew how to heat water using only their bare hands.  
_So much for a warm bath._

He peeled off his white shirt, already drenched in sweat (honestly how did these guys put up with this heat day and night, every day?!) and then his rather soft pants followed. Underwear and boots were discarded as well before the hard man gazed aimlessly at the water. This was going to be pure freezing hell.  
But when he slipped his slender form into the liquid, he was enveloped in a sense of... _home_. The sight of crystal-like ice covering lakes, memories of skating and sliding on it, the feel of snow, clinging to his scarf and piling atop his head, soaking his hair as frigid air licked his fingertips and toes, the smell of fresh hot chocolate, warming his nostrils and filling his lungs with much needed degrees of pure satisfaction, and the chiming you could almost hear as flakes fell from the sky, coating the roads and angering foreigners, all rushed to his mind.

Though it was true today was only the third day he has lived in the fire kingdom, it was eight days since he had left everything he knew and anything he could have loved. It was his first job leaving the country, as he was the prince's squire, meaning he would be with Emil wherever he went, and even had the room right next to his half-brother's.

He submersed his head in water, watching with feigned interest as the clear liquid soon began taking the dirt off of his body and treating it like its own problem.

* * *

He remembered just how surprised he was when he had acquired the position next to the king-to-be. It wasn't easy; it was anything but easy.

* * *

The swordsman gasped as he popped his neck up out of the water, breathing in sweet air he had prevented his body from receiving only moments ago.

* * *

Yes, it was difficult to say the least. It started with his eleven years of scurrying around the palace like he was a rat.

_Or a lemming for that matter._

Only his mother would provide him with food, shelter, clothing, and education ever since his half-brother was born. Only she loved him. He would run to her beside every morning, the bright white light pouring into every window in the entire castle seemingly following him, as if it wanted to greet the angelic woman as well. As if it wanted to push the child away, and monopolize his mother. Every single day, he felt like he had to fight for his mother, just like he had to for everything.

* * *

The now sandy, almost Luke-warm water didn't stop the assassin from rubbing wax-like soap up and down his arms, soaking it in his moist surroundings before repeating the process with his chest and neck. His back followed and he lifted his legs out of the water, giving them the same treatment. It felt so amazing. It felt so unreal. It felt like he was back in his home country, bathing for a big occasion.

* * *

He also recalled how he had just done that shortly after his father had been killed, purposely skipping over the recollection of his mother coughing up dubious amounts of blood before dying, no, don't remember the sad remember the happy, like the smile that tried feebly to split his face when news of his father's assassination reached his ears. Lips in a firm line, he nodded as this delicate man, Tino he believed, held his hands, in an attempt to calm the young teen that _should _had bawled his eyes out, screamed and kicked, threw a tantrum, but the adolescent instead stood there, trying his best to hold back hysterical laughter.

"The new ruler, King Berwald, wants to make you the prince's new squire. Is that okay?" Before Nikolai could speak, a small boy, no more than twelve years of age spoke up.

"No way! I _hate _him!" Purple eyes shot hatred as the young royalty stood up, and pointed, almost accusingly, at Nikolai.

"With all respect sir, you shouldn't say that about your brother!" The blonde small male that had been… _consoling_ Nikolai stood up, rage filling his gentle voice and not suiting him in the slightest.

"He's not my brother! Father told me that he was a mistake my mother made! That he's the reason my mom died! I bet he killed dad too! I don't want to die!"

"Please Prince Emil be calm!" Tino then grabbed the slightly shorter boy as he thrashed and writhed in his arms.

"No! It's my squire _I'll _choose him!" The child pushed his captor off and stomped his foot down. "According to Ice Kingdom Law section 42 subsection b, the single requirement of a squire to any royalty is he or she must only have royal blood. While it's true that he _does, _several others do as well! Grandsons and great grandsons of past royalty are also candidates. So," the small boy crossed his arms in front of his chest, "I propose a contest: a battle tournament. Entries are all with a _drop _of royal blood. The same section, only subsection c, states that if someone in royalty is dissatisfied with their squire, then they can hold an event such as what I described. The winner will be my squire. Simple as that."

* * *

The water soon lost its magic, so he stepped out of the tub, grabbing a bucket and dumping the dirty bath water out of the small window in the room, careful of not giving anyone a shower. As soon as it was empty, Nikolai began to fill up the bathtub again, slipping inside once more and feeling him muscles tense while experiencing his mind loosening.

* * *

It was the last one, after the big burly man, nothing stood in the way of himself and his brother,

_Whom abhorred him with such passion._

He knew full well that every opponent he went up against was trained in the art of battle. That each "randomized" match the prince spoke of, was set up specifically to pinpoint his weaknesses. That each large, bulk, muscular, and cunning man he fought could have been the death of him.

But, he also knew what his mother's last words were on her deathbed, and he was determined to not let her down, even if they weren't the "I love you," that he wanted.

It felt so natural by now, killing that is. He was but fifteen years old, and had been in the army for five years. Of course, until he turned thirteen he was merely errand boy. He proved his worth in battle by slaughtering about 3 important Fire Kingdom generals in his first year of fighting. Ever since, his reputation had built.

"You must be kidding, I don't attack children." He memorized the man's face clearly, as he did with every man and woman he ever planned to kill. Although, to be fair, he didn't have to slay _any _of his enemies, but immobilizing them was often harder, and required more precision and time.

"I'm no child." The man, gruff and quite ugly, turned his attention from the king to the child. He scoffed, his chapped lips upturning into a wry grin.

"Oh really now, how old are you?" The man rubbed his oily black hair with his left hand, idly holding his blade in a loose and careless grip with the other.

"I'm not sure." And with this, his enemy busted out in a loud, obnoxious laughter, throwing his head back and placing both hands on his hips. Nikolai observed his large, hooked nose, and how he had a scar right under his right ear, which was pierced with a single golden ring. He noted silently that his armor was actually quite stupid: all fashion and no function. Although this suggested that he was good enough that he didn't need it.

The hideous male then leaned forward, as a way of intimidating the teen, but honestly the only scary thing was his _breath_. Rats might as well have died in his throat. "Oh really, then you're not the brightest are you?"

"Brighter than you." Seething rage passed through the other's eyes. He gritted his teeth and growled angrily.

"What was that?!" And as a response, Nikolai spat in his eye.

The _beast _let out a ferocious roar, swinging his weapon down with such force that if the younger of the two hadn't stepped out of the way in time, he would be in halves. Using the opportunity of confusion, Nikolai landed a sound stab, a rusted dagger being his only tool, to the man's bare hand.

"Invest in better armor." He advised before jumping back, narrowly avoiding another hit of the large broadsword. Blood oozed over the large man's knuckles, nerves tensing as he attempted to use his injured appendage.

"Shut your mouth!" And Nikolai obliged, ducking as another swing was aimed at him, easily knocking the man off of his feet with a swift kick, once again using the situation to his advantage. He quickly rolled out of the way of the now falling giant, being quick on his feet, and even quicker onto the man's back, where he reached hand around and pressed the blade of his dagger against the soft exposed skin known as the man's neck. He decided to give a bit of sympathy, maybe it was to impress the king, or maybe it was the simple fact that just because killing was natural, it wasn't pleasant. He could spare just one man right?

"Forfeit." A grunt from below him signaled the battle wasn't over.

"No chance in _hell."_ And before he could blink, the monster stood in such a fierce manner that he was thrown from the large body, crashing his back onto the fence of the arena. He heard pumped shouting next to his ears, blood thirsty audience members cheering him on,

_As he was the only fighter to kill every single one of his enemies. _

In a dazed state, he still managed to see a blurred image of the man charging towards him; he faintly wondered how much endurance the man must have had in order to continue even holding his sword, let alone crash it down-

_Shit._

He once again rolled out of the way, tucking into a tight ball.

_Idiot, idiot, idiot, idiot!_

He jumped up, a bit dizzy as he quickly raced away from the, thankfully slow, opponent.

_Why, why did I want to let him go?!_

One last hope, one last ditch effort. The bull-like man began giving chase, and Nikolai bit his bottom lip, before turning, facing what seemed to be the devil himself, before shutting one eye, taking aim, and tossing his weapon, the dagger plunging firmly into the man's skull, right between his dark eyes.

And he fell.

His claymore was dropped for lifeless hands and clanged against the stone floor of the arena,

And the crowd exploded in cheers.

Nikolai absorbed the victory, happy just to be alive, even if he never thought he'd have something to live for,

And he looked to his half-brother, seeking approval,

But only a scowl greeted him.

And that night was the night that he took his first fancy bath in the palace where he now belonged.

* * *

As he sat there and just soaked, deciding that he deserved a break from everything because he simply _did, _Nikolai thought about what would happen if he hadn't moved, if he had lost.

_Well for one, Emil would probably still be filled with the corruption of that bitch. Damn Lukas bastard._

He felt a throbbing sensation in his arm, and rubbed the upper area near his shoulder with mild irritation. He then began making mental connections and chuckled at the similarity between that man and Mathias: everything from the large weaponry to the lack of armor.

_Except Mathias has the bite to back up his bark… And his breath is more pleasant. _

Sinking further into the water so that only his face was exposed, the swordsman closed his eyes and sighed.

He sure did miss the place he called hell for all those years.

* * *

"King Mathias? Is something the matter?" Toris seemed fairly on edge, which rather amused the now masterminding ruler.

"Hmm? No nothing is wrong, I have great news." Now the brunette smiled again.

"Really? How wonderful! Do share!"

"You're going home Toris." Widened eyes and dilated black dots greeted his gaze.

"H-Home?"

* * *

A/N: I don't know if you got the whole –insert inference here- part of chapter 3 (or something), but Toris asked Nikolai "you stuck here too?" albeit with his eyes but MEH. Toris is originally from another country and things happened, now he works for Mathias, so there you have it.

I'm pretty sure this fanfiction will have nothing to do with history so please don't go around saying Denmark took over Lithuania xD

Oh and I forgot to mention this but the cover picture thing isn't mine :3 it's much too beautiful!

Below is just me talking about the videogame mentioned in the beginning:

I wrote this over the course of a few days because I'm too easily distracted to do it in one sitting, and I just thought I'd mention that I got the Professor Layton IPhone app and *w* I love it. Although I hate the fact that I have to pay for the rest of the chapters TT^TT when I'm broke… and I dislike Lucy; they basically took Luke, made him a girl, and then made her grown up. FOR PETE'S SAKE SHE EVEN DID THE "Is you!" POINT RIGHT WHEN ALFENDI ENTERED THE ROOM JUST LIKE IN THE ETERNAL DIVA! And then she calls the inspector "Prof." I understand that they're trying to pay tribute to the original game and all, but they should do it in ways such as "As my father would always say…" or "My father traveled with this young boy that used to say –insert phrase-" And maybe that's not in his character, true, possible, I understand. WHAT ABOUT PUZZLES?! THEY JUST LIKE WERE TOSSED OUT A WINDOW LIKE HAHA BYE BYE BUDDY! No. As far as following the Professor Layton original format, the game _The Jim and Frank Mysteries: The Blood River Files_ is much similar and it's not even made by Level 5. However, I already like the plot of the Professor Layton app and I love the gameplay. It's more like the Phoenix Wright series so if you liked that but thought professor Layton should be more intense, check out _Mystery Room!_

_Review if you want~_


	7. Home

I know what you're thinking. _Where have you been?! _Simply put, I'm poor and my internet and phone service was shut off. Sorry guys :/

Also, I had many different pasts I could choose from for Lithuania, so I just mashed them all together because… why not? You may say,, why do you have so much Toris here when he has nothing to do with Denmark/Denmark/Norway? Simply enough _I like him :3 _ even though he's not my absolute favorite…

Enjoy~

* * *

Home.

What a foreign word anymore. What was home anyways? Certainly not the city at the bottom of a lake where he came from. It's not the place of joy he once knew. Home wasn't existent in a concrete sense anymore.  
Then, was home where Feliks was: the blonde childhood friend, laughing and speaking in such a feminine fashion as he rode his pony, which was by now, no doubt, a full-fledged stallion? Maybe mustang was a better title for the horse that his green-eyed friend had forced Toris to ride (which he later released), in order to spare his and the colt's life when the group got attacked, as many of the refugees from "The Converging" did. He still remembered the day he was separated from the closest person to him on Earth. It was also the day he had his first kiss. _Feliks had… always had an odd air about him, and had seemed happiest when next to Toris' side, so honestly, he shouldn't have been so surprised when the blonde turned around, both on horseback and more over, moving, then pecked his lips messily. He hated to think about this admittedly happy moment, because seconds later, the man shoved the reins at him, jumping off of his favorite animal then yelling a command at the horse. The brunette heard nothing as he watched Feliks' seemingly shrinking figure in surprise. Finally, the first strike of astonishment faded, and he stopped the horse, proceeding then to call out to the man. He felt a hole rip through his soul when the clear sound of a crossbow being fired rang out, and his best friend dropped onto the barren ground, yet before he could even hope to go to help, Pony, which just so happened to be the horse's actual name, was off once more, startled by the noise. Toris screamed and yelled and even kicked the horse, trying to make it halt, and when all else failed, his loyalty to his only friend fueled his jump off of the colt. Luck didn't seem to be with him that day, as his foot caught onto the saddle, leaning the horse to the side and send him harshly to the ground. He cried in pain as his leg just snapped, knowing full-well he had broken it. "G-Go... Save Feliks." He gasped out, and the horse took off, but in the wrong direction. "No… No! Feliks! Go help him! Help Feliks!" suddenly he felt a jab to the back of his neck, and everything went black._

Home, how he wished he still had one…  
Was it in the hold of the tall and muscular boss he had afterwards? The one who found him, knocked him out, bandaged him, then took him back home, waiting until Toris' leg was healed, and not a moment later, to put him to harsh work.

_"All I have done for you and this is how you repay me?!" _

The man with snow white locks and dazzling purple orbs?

_"You insolent, ungrateful ingrate!" _The one who had, on multiple occasions, lost it, although, the worst physically he had ever gotten was a harsh punch on occasion. And yet... The mental anguish never quite went away. The fear that with every step he took, he may attract unwanted attention, and be interrogated, inspected, hit, shoved, insulted for just existing. The complete and utter terror clutching his stomach as he thought: _what if he ever truly snaps?_  
A place so fearsome, was it home?  
Was home the two servants he had run away with?

_It was terrifying, the look in Ivan's eyes. Then… Then… It almost filled his heart with guilt when the monster realized just what he had done. He stood over the dead body, tears slipping down his cheeks. "I didn't… want… This isn't…"_

_"Run." A whisper in his ear, but it sounded like God himself commanding his feet to move with the source of the statement._

The small boy and the one with the glasses? Eduard and... God he couldn't even remember anymore; was that home? The times they shared together were priceless and it almost made him feel loved again.

_Almost…_  
Yes, he decided, home is where you feel loved. He knew clearly, that after R..Ra... Ravis, _yes that was it_ passed away from a sun stroke_,_

_Ironically enough, while trying to make it to the Fire Kingdom in search of freedom_,

and Eduard suggested that they went their separate ways from there on out, that any chance of home there had fallen and shattered.  
Then again, maybe this wonderful place is home: by the side of Alfred Jones, one of King Mathias's most trusted advisors. The same loud, boisterous male who had saved him from baking in the desert, in the façade of: "I just needed another servant."

_The one who called himself a hero, really was just that in Toris' eyes. _

The same man whom he had served as a squire until the dirty-blonde promoted him to co-advisor of the king. With this job he would work off his debt to the Kingdom (his life essentially) faster. He still helped around the palace even if it wasn't his duty any longer because... Because... Well he wasn't quite sure why actually. He didn't know why he didn't lay back and take it easy from that day on, letting all his sufferings fall at the wayside. Maybe... Maybe he just wanted a place to belong, even though a citizen of... The Sun Palace... He knew... Knew he would never really have a home.

And even though he had that knowledge, the small walls he had put up around him, with a wide open front door and a quaint little roof, began crumbling to dust as charred pieces of wood cascaded from the sky surrounding his mind.

He felt his mouth open and close several times, trying to speak, and just failing to provide words. Finally a small desperate whisper:  
"Surely you jest-"  
"I do tend to joke a lot, but I'm serious right now." The reply was so quick compared to the time it had taken to give the original statement.  
Toris felt his legs shaking, and his shins turned to rubber, leaving his falling to the ground. "B-But I… I love this job…" He tightened his hands into fists, his irises slamming into every which way, attempting to find logical words to say. His mind began grabbing at thin strings and he suddenly lurched forward. He groped desperately at the man's left pant leg, knowing full well this as probably one of the most degrading things he had ever done, and that he looked like a complete idiot. "S-Sir p-please don't make me leave. I beg of you." Tears began swelling at the corners of his eyes, "you know I do good work! I'd rather stay! Please!"  
Mathias looked down upon the man, a cold unfeeling gaze gracing his features. "Why? Laborers are paid well in this town, and jobs are easy to find; don't you want to be free-"  
"With all due respect, do not give me that idiocy. You know very well I'd be deported the moment I stepped out of this castle. Only prisoners of war and captured servants allowed in foreign nations; basic information."  
Mathis could barely repress a smirk from surfacing. "Oh? I seem to have let that slip my mind..."  
"I'll wash the entirely palace floors daily! I'll clean the grand rug in the throne room once a week! I'll do all the dirty work that no other servants wish to do! I'll cook! I'll feed the wild animals! Please, please do not fire me!" No response, absolutely nothing. Was this some kind of game to him?! "What did I do wrong?! Surely I haven't messed up enough to upset you this much!" The brunette dug his fingers into the elegant cloth with great force.  
"Oh, you've done no wrong; you've simply paid off your debt of owing your life to Alfred. You're done working."  
"... It's Nikolai, isn't it?" This time the king raised a brow, suddenly showing fair interest in what Toris was saying. "You're going to replace me with him, correct?" His denim-colored eyes searched the expensive tiled floors, as if his reflection would give him answers. Only when he saw a golden image of the blonde throwing his head back in laughter did his gaze shoot up again, looking right into condescending pools of sky blue.  
"Wow, wow, you're quick to catch on. Pretty smart; no wonder I kept you as my advisor for so long."  
"Not to be rude, but that's a terrible idea." And suddenly the bright orbs turned to slits as Mathias reached down and pulled the servant up by his collar, hoisting him in the air. Toris placed both hands on the fist balled at the neck of his shirt and kicked a bit, trying to get down.

_That's not right, _

_It can't be right…._

Mathias looked for an easy answer; he refused to believe that… that… absolute shit!  
"Aww, how cute, _you're jealous_." He shook the man back and forth once, then again for good measure.  
"No sir I'm not." The voice was rasping and cracking.  
"Then kindly explain why." He let the man drop to the ground, the brunette shaking a bit before using his arms to force his body up. He inhaled a deep, shaky breath before once again looking to the shiny surface he had landed on. "Why?"  
"Well there's the obvious reasons: he's technically going to be Duke of The Ice Kingdom as soon as King Berwald dies, and he only shows dedication to prince Emil. Then there's also a fact that you seem to have overlooked." Eye contact was made again and if looks could kill, Toris would be long gone. "He's going to kill himself."  
With that, the ruler's world might as well have crashed down all around him, but instead of showing the sadness that engulfed him or the iciness that swallowed his soul, he yanked the other man up by his elbow, sending the poor male back a few steps. "You, you, you..."

Anger.

Rage.

He couldn't find words. He couldn't find sentences. There was no logic to anything in his head anymore. "What the hell do you mean?!" He began to slowly and menacingly approach upon the smaller figure, and for every step he took forward, Toris took two in the opposite direction, at least, until his back was pressed firmly against the wall. "I said," the taller of the two gripped his subordinate's shoulders tightly, "_What the hell_ do you mean?"  
"O-One of the first rules of being an assassin is that you're a tool, and very replaceable. That your purpose is only to complete a mission and kill yourself if caught."  
"And how would you know?"  
"M-Mr. Ivan would often hire them. Th-They weren't great conversationalists but I eventually l-learned how to talk to them." The mentioning of that man made the very familiar scene even more terrifying for the servant. He felt the king trembling a bit, the hold on his shoulders tightening to the point where he winced in pain. Silence was encasing them, slowly but surely, and soon the air was tense enough to be confused as steel. But even the toughest materials may shatter if proper force is applied.  
"This is all your fault! Completely your fault!" Pure rage was fueling Mathias's actions as he raised his right fist, much to Toris' horror, and slammed it down. The impact caused a fair amount of blood to splatter, covering one side of the brunette's face, his eyes showing nothing but pure horror. Shakily, he turned his gaze to his left side, seeing a reddened clenched hand, the rustic color oozing from the knuckles. He snapped out of his initial shock and near-traumatization in order to rush out of the room, coming back in a few seconds with a full roll of gauze and a soapy rinse. When he returned the king was sitting on the ground, on his knees and close to tears. He poured the water over the hand before tightly wrapping the appendage. Mathias hissed a few times, but said nothing more. It took a few minutes until the silence was broken.  
"Thank you." Toris' smile honestly shocked the king.  
"What for?"  
"For not hitting me." Mathias' mouth pressed into a flat line and he looked away from the servant. This dumb-ass servant reminded him so much… so much of… _him._

_"Thank you Mathias, for being such a kind little brother." _

He hummed lowly in reply_, _fishing himself out of his daydreams, and heard a rip as Toris tore the bandaging to size and tucked a piece under the gauze that was already applied. He then proceeded to stand and help his king up as well. "Now, I suppose I'll get my things ready to be shipped off to the Water Palace, or maybe the fire prisons." Mathias bit his bottom lip and sighed before shaking his head, he blonde spiky locks waving a bit with the motion.  
"No, you can stay. It was a... Rather... Foolish notion to replace you. It's just-"  
"If you really want Nikolai to see you as more than the man that determines his brother's well-being, then I suggest you do it the old-fashioned way. Try bring nice, and show him your down-to-earth side. Then I'm sure you two would make great friends."  
Despite the calming words, the monarch still felt rather uneasy. "If what you said is true... Gilbert and Alfred... They ran into an Earth kingdom citizen on the way and payed them to use his teleportation. They had long dropped off Emil. I received word from Gilbird this morning... There's no reason for Nikolai to live anymore right?!" He used his left hand to gently grip the subordinate's upper arm. Toris seemed surprised by this information before mulling it over.  
"Well... He doesn't have to find out until those two come back right? How long does that leave us?"  
"Week at most..." Suddenly Mathias' eyes glinted. "... 'Us'?"  
"Of course 'us'! As the king's co-advisor I can't just sit idly by while his dear lemming doll drops from his hands." And the ruthless man felt a giant grin wash over his features, his brows un-tensing and his grip loosening, only for him to throw his arms around the fragile figure, giving a bear hug (and profusely apologizing when he realized Toris couldn't breathe).

"Emil... Emil..."  
_Who's that? I know that voice... Is it... Brother?_  
"Prince Emil... Please be okay... Emil."  
A desperate tone filled the royalty's ears.  
_No... Not Nikolai..._  
"Come on, Mr. Puffin doesn't like the food I make for him... You have to wake up."  
Only this sole voice filled his ears. Only one person. One person he couldn't remember... But... Just... Just maybe...  
"Kaoru!" The small frame shot up, everything from his shoulders down, covered in bandages. His only clothes were a simple pair of tan shorts. He felt more gauze circling his head as he shifted his neck side-to-side, analyzing the medical room he was in, much like a trapped bird. His gaze rested on the brown haired male that was currently staring wide-eyed at him, golden orbs shining. In fact, the brunette was the only other person in the room.  
"E...Emil..." This new man stood quickly before giving a salute. It was almost amusing the way his arms and legs shook a bit.  
"Kaoru..." The exchanging of names was getting old, at least by the shorter's terms, so said boy threw his arms around his squire, burrowing his face in the man's neck. At first, the large-browed man didn't know what to do, but allowed his lips to turn upward in a _very_ small smile, and returned the small embrace.  
"Welcome home, my prince."

* * *

*walking through store and spots a box of Insta-plot*

*buys*

*Cooks in oven a little too long.*

*Opens door and panics because the pan is overflowing*

*reads warnings*

_May cause flashbacks, extremely confusing wording, and extreme OOC characters._

"….FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF-"


	8. With Dreams and Children's Pain

I was so certain I would get this out early but in fact I got it out about a billion days later vnv I'm sorry. There are no excuses to be given, for I have not a single reason.

* * *

"Reading... To... Children?... Are you sure you have the right Mathias?" Nikolai stood in pure shock when Toris explained to him where the missing king was.  
"Certainly; his highness is great with children!" The brunette smiled and continued to fold laundry. The warrior said nothing more; instead, he just followed the directions given to him, as he needed to guard the rather idiotic ruler.  
_Who in the right mind walks around unprotected when they're royalty? _The assassin walked with vigor, taking each step with purpose. _Then again he isn't exactly in the right mind..._  
The platinum-blonde arrived at two large twin doors, pushing them open only after mentally gawking at the exquisite pieces of refined wood, complex carvings covering the expensive means of entry. What he saw on the other side was quite unusual to say the least. There sat the brutal king, a simple kids' book open to near-end on his lap as he comforted a concerned looking child.  
"Mommy says Klu will be deported. I don't understand what that is or what he did wrong!" Large eyes showing nothing but fear made the ruler's stomach do flips. The owner of the kicked-puppy-like gaze make an odd whining sound, "I don't even know what deportation is!"  
"Well... You see... Deportation is... Well it's..." The spiky-haired blonde spotted the new guest and swallowed hard. He had decided that from now on, the other would see him in a new light. He would know the better and gentler side of the King of Flames. "Deportation is a system the governments of every kingdom have agreed upon and have set up. Any foreigner of another nation or any child of 13 years of age or old who acts like any other type of kingdom citizen is immediately sent to their original or characteristically fit nation..."

_Because that was just so gentle, _he mentally scolded himself, _way to go, idiot._  
"Who's Klu?" Nikolai made his way into the small room, faintly noticing the smell of cleaning fluids lacing nearly every wooden piece of children's furniture he passed. He sat down, next to the rainbow mat the young children were placed on. The small girl with her chestnut hair tied in a side ponytail sniffled before pointing to another small individual, this one male with two long golden braids. He didn't so much as smile, and instead merely managed a wave to the warrior, not that he minded.  
"His full name is Klugel Mugel." Nikolai found a chilling resemblance in his brother's and this child's eyes. Both sets were a stunning amethyst, and to most people, would seem clouded over in an emotionless haze. However, as we all know, this man was great at reading between the lines; he could see the terror surging through the child's gaze.  
"He will, undoubtedly, be deported to the Ice Kingdom when he is of age." The brunette sitting on Mathias' lap began to outright bawl at the warrior's words.  
"Lemming!" The monarch hissed before rubbing the girl's back in comforting circles.

The warrior couldn't believe just how stupid Mathias was. _Honestly, _couldn't he tell that the one that needed comfort wasn't the little girl, but the young boy? Nikolai wasn't great with children, seeing as he's never truly had to deal with them. However, the few times he would comfort a crying or hurt Emil certainly must have trained him a bit for this, correct?

"Have you ever seen snow?" Klugel blinked, dismissing his voice. "I'm talking to you, not her." At this, Klu drifted his gaze back and forth slowly, as if looking for someone else the man could possibly have his attention turned to, however, it was obvious he was looking right at the braided-child.

"…Snow?" The inquiry was an answer in itself; Nikolai took this opportunity to do what he had wanted to ever since he stepped into this giant bowl of sand. He slowly began rubbing his hands together, as if he was frozen to the bone. His fingers soon became very pale, contrary to common sense. Klugel found himself soon staring attentively at this man's fingers, which looked to be almost a light blue by now. The faster the Ice Kingdom citizen went, the colder he became, until he separated his palms. Quickly, Nikolai blew on the frost-bitten appendages, nearly smiling at Klu's face when snowflakes flew from his hold. He inhaled once more, and blew again. He did this repetitively until he felt dizzy. He felt his world start to spin and relaxed his body, leaning back and balancing himself on his elbows. Meanwhile, the children looking in awe as fluffy white clumps that floated and blew all around them, whilst holding themselves in chilled amazement. The brunette, whom was seated on Mathias's lap, hopped off, running around and trying to catch the cold flakes in her mouth. Soon many children joined her, a particularly familiar looking boy with a square-shaped curl lifting Klugel to his feet to join them. He sent a small smile Nikolai's way before racing after the drifting white tuffs.

"… I didn't know you could do that…" The king walked over and sat beside the breathless man.

"It's not something I just tell people." Mathias slightly twitched at how pert his tone was, but ended up laughing.

"And here I thought you'd be terrible with children… Hey," His bright blue eyes seemed to widen in interest and he started looking like a king to the cold-hearted warrior. "What else do you have up your sleeves?"

"A magician never reveals his secrets." The king felt as if he should pout like a child, or intimidate the shorter male into speaking, but quite frankly, to have Nikolai comfortable enough to actually joke with him, made Mathias just want to jump for joy. So Mathias reached out and swung his arm around the man's waist, messing up his hair with spare hand. The warrior voiced several objections, but the ruler just chuckled.

"Whatever you adorable little shit."

* * *

"Prince Emil! Come to your senses; do you know what you are saying?!" Berwald, the great King of the Ice Kingdom sat in a freezing meeting room, along with several members of his council, his squire, Tino, and the prince of the same kingdom. He pushed his chair back in his hasty stand, objecting to the boy's words. The usually calm and collected ruler, who intimidated with his looks alone, was now extremely pissed at this young monarch.

"I know exactly what I'm saying! And I'm speaking of it with confidence! I implore you, we must get my brother back no matter the cost!" purple eyes filled with pure determination met the threatening gaze without so much as faltering. His squire, Kaoru, had also accompanied him, and the brunette was currently pretty surprised at how his boyfriend was acting.

"You are suggesting a _full out war_ with the Fire Kingdom!" The tall and very broad man bit his lip as Emil continued in promoting his argument.

"He's the leader of the army! Best warrior you have! Best assassin! Most of all, he's my own personal guard! Kaoru can't be stuck with both his squire duties and watching over me all day! And furthermore, tension is building up regardless. You can't avoid warfare and you know it!" The prince now stood as well. "He's such an important part of the army you can't just-" By this time both men had walked around the round table, holding glasses and plates of several generals who had remained seated, watching all that unfolded.

"He's most likely _dead_."

"Well we don't know that for sure!" No one, _no one, _had ever seen the boy so angry, so emotional at all actually. He was a solid block of ice, just like Nikolai.

"Lukas forgive me," Berwald raised his arm, and with a loud and sudden _smack _he had struck Prince Emil harshly on the cheek, hoping to bring him back to his senses. And the monarch stayed in his position of his face to the right, a reddening madness spreading across the skin on his face in the shape of a palm. It seemed like years to those few that were in the room, barely breathing through all the tension. When Emil once again turned his stare to Berwald's eyes, amethyst flames nearly shot from his eyes.

The prince turned on his heel and almost left the room in a rather childish manner, but the door had already been opened, and was currently slowly drifting shut. A glance to the side confirmed his suspicions and the Prince bit his bottom lip. "I'm sorry that was out of line your highness." He then took his leave.

When he reached the hallway, he needed only to turn left to spot the missing individual.

"Kaoru…" The man was leant against a wall, with the straightest face he could possibly pull on.

"Let us go my prince." The words, which were so formal, so regular, so normal, stung Emil. The Earth Land citizen was treating him as if he were just a person to serve, and nothing more.

And nothing could have made Emil sadder.

* * *

"King Berwald, is there anything else I can do for you?" Brown, expectant eyes shined as a small blonde man finished hanging up the last of the ruler's coat, fresh from the wash.

"No Tino, that will be all. Thank you though." The other blonde, one with sapphires for eyes, muttered as he leafed through his papers, looking for something to fill out that he may have missed, anything to get his mind off of Emil for a bit.

"Are you sure sir? You don't sound very certain." The rather cute male made his way over to the king, "If it's about the prince, I know he'll eventually see what you're trying to say." Tino placed a reassuring hand on Berwald's shoulder, "He's actually pretty bright."

"I know." The short of the two smiled, used to this personality, this air of distance.

"Well even if you know, you seem to doubt something." He was proud to be able to say he was the only person who could even come close to reading the king. He saw victory in the fact that the ruler of the entire Ice Kingdom trusted him more than anyone else.

He, who was nothing more than Sun Kingdom trash, was the closest person to the king.

"I don't think he understands war yet. He doesn't get it." The man sighed and turned his head to his subordinate. "would you talk to him?"

"Gladly." Tino leaded down and pressed his lips to Berwald's in a short moment of contact. "Anything for you, my highness."

"Anything?" A nod, "Then kiss me again."

"I was hoping you'd say that."

* * *

"No, don't!" A small child ran. Ran away from a giant shadow that chased him. Chased him down abandoned hallways, through crumbling doorways, across moss-covered floors, and into the deepest darkest corners of the boy's mind. "Leave me alone! I've done nothing wrong!" Suddenly black consumed every inch. Nothing but onyx for miles. The boy was backed into a corner, the evil shadow, who was so very dark that it stuck out in the pure charcoal color all around him. "Leave me alone! Go away!"

"You fed the damn rat again didn't you?! Gave him your table scraps!" A long blade was unsheathed, the tip pointed right at the boy's throat. "Keep a pest fed and all it will do is eat and reproduce."

"He's a human! And he's starving! He's still my brother!"

"Don't let me _ever _hear you say that again! Understand!? That rodent isn't your brother! You don't even share a father! He had that spineless fool Nikolai." The blade suddenly turned into a whip. "And you're going about _feeding _that creature. You'll end up on your deathbed, sick from his curses, just like your mother." The boy turned to try to run again, pushing at the corner he couldn't even see, for everything was as dark as possible. Then the game began. The counting game: his least favorite.

"Let's see how many lashes we can give until Emil passes out, shall we?"

"No, _no!_"

One.

Two.

Three.

He couldn't escape; the boy could only curl up into a shell of himself, curl up and count sheep until he could fall asleep. Because then the ripping pains in his back would stop.

Ten.

Eleven.

Twelve.

He felt his skin literally tearing apart, his back turning to ugly shreds, like cheap fabric. The flesh soon began going through a merciless cycle of scolding, freezing, and cool.

Twenty Three.

Twenty Four.

The leather would strike his body, and catch his back on fire. The blood would ooze from new and reopened wounds, achieving a comfortable temperature, until a gust of icy wind would blow in, whispering on his back until it felt like frost.

Thirty Five.

Thirty Six.

This unrelenting cycle kept up. It kept up until Emil heard buzzing in his ears, smiling and snuggling his head deeper into his knees as he finished his counting.

Fifty Three.

A new record.

Emil woke with a start, cold sweat pouring down his face, running down his neck back and chest, pooling on his upper lip and ultimately making him rather cold. He rubbed his arms, creating friction, and snuggled under some blankets, He found it amusing how tears didn't even dare to escape anymore. Yet, he still wished that he had someone to hold and to talk to, to banish the nightmares. Nightmares that he had nearly every night. He was so used to these night terrors, that as quickly as he woke from his memory caused dreams, he was asleep again, occasionally hugging Mr. Puffin for warmth.

Suddenly white began seeping through the cracks in the walls, and the separation of the tiles covering the floor. Fast forward and here Emil is again, engulfed in nothingness, but this time, it was a calmer empty sensation, with a more welcomed presence: a younger Nikolai, one who was currently quizzing his brother.

"After… 36?"

"37."

"Good. Where'd you learn your numbers?"

"Father taught me." The younger of the two continued petting a small dog that Mr. Tino owned.

"Mother taught me."

"Really?"

"Really." Silence. "Let's go."

"Go? Where?"

"To mom." And the two boys were suddenly there, a large tombstone decorating the earth where the dead body of their mother. Flowers were scattered all around them and the grave. They spent was could have very well been hours just sitting there, waiting.

Waiting for nothing.

Staring at a rock which would never change its words.

And yet waiting and staring brought them both a small bit of closure.

"She loved you." Nikolai spoke almost wistfully.

"… She loved you."

"Nonsense."

More silence. More all-consuming silence.

"What did she used to say about me?" Emil spoke up.

"… She told me to protect you. She told me that all the time. She said you were fragile." The prince was slightly ashamed to seem so weak to his mother. "'Nikolai, protect Emil'" the sudden use of third person speech attracted the ruler-to-be's attention. "Those were her last words." And he felt his heart sink. Drop to his stomach, in fact.

"…I'm sor-"

"What did he do to you?"

"Wha-" his big brother's eyes narrowed in suspicion and he faced his younger sibling, meeting their gazes. A raging blizzard passed through his irises.

"What did that Lukas bastard do to you?"

Kaoru made his way into Emil's room. An elegant arrangement of white dryads were brought along as an apology. He was rather curt with the prince earlier, and even if it was partly the silver-haired male's fault for being rather unreasonable, he still let his anger over the slap the prince received reflect on said boy, which was _completely unreasonable._

He was rather happy to see that his beloved little Emil was fast asleep, with a small smile on his face. He made his way over to the smaller male and placed the flora down on his ornate nightstand before placing a small and gentle peck on his forehead.

"Good night sir." He moved some hair away from Emil's eyes before once again leaving the prince's quarters, closing the door softly behind him.

* * *

"Sleepover!" A giddy king stood by his captive servant, practically jumping with joy. "Sleepover sleepover sleepover!" He began almost singing the vile words. Mathias was currently in rather fancy and bright red silk pajamas, no doubt sewn by a master. Meanwhile, poor Nikolai was in plain boxers and an oversized shirt. The two were currently in the ruler's room, along with another servant, Toris, who was trying to calm the assassin down.

"Listen I'm very sorry, I don't mean to inconvenience you in such a way but soon we are scheduled to get several important visitors to the castle!" He ran a hand nervously through his chestnut hair, "We have no choice but to refurbish your room to accommodate one or two!" The reasoning seemed to anger the warrior even more.

"Why _my _room?" the brunette would have to be blind to not see the fire that shot from Nikolai's icy eyes.

"W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-well you s-s-s-see it's-"

"Lemming~! Stop being so boring! Just stay!" Mathias then began to _hang _on the Ice Kingdom citizen, holding his arm as if he were a small child, hugging that of a parent. "If you don't I'll-" The king looked to Toris who slightly shook his head, "… be lonely."

"…" Nikolai turned his glare to the man, who didn't even flinch. He then sighed and hung his head. "Fine whatever. I don't care anymore." He made his way over to a lavish piece of carpet that was covering the floor near the foot of Mathias's glorious bed, which was composed of soft sheets, plush pillows, and a mattress suitable for a god, let alone a king. Golden embroidery decorated the entirely red piece of furniture. It just screamed royalty.

"Yay! Sleepover buddy!" The ruler detached himself from Nikolai's arms, before jumping onto the bed with great excitement, feeling the slight bounce he received from the comfortable over-sized and over-luxurious cushion. He laughed and waved to Toris, who exited the room with a smile, gently closing the door behind him. The spiky-haired individual sat up, grinning. "So I guess means we're best friends now huh?!" He smiled, with big puppy dog eyes.

"What?" These words genuinely shocked the other blonde.

"We're best friends! Only best friends have sleepovers right?!" Nikolai narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

_What's his game? _

Yet poor Mathias was actually just trying to make him feel comfortable, as well as rack up some friendship points.

"Believe what you will." The cold-hearted man then did something unexpected and sat on the carpeting, curling up into a ball and closing his eyes, trying to get some rest.

"L-Lemming? What are you doing?" Mathias peaked out over the edge of the mattress, staring down at the other individual.

"Sleeping."

"On the floor?"

"Where else?" The king raised a brow.

"What do you mean where else? On the bed of course!"

"You take it; you're the king, aren't you?"

"What's wrong with sharing?"

"Sh-Sharing? A bed?" Interestingly enough, the warrior tensed at his own words, and although he couldn't see his face, the king could tell he was suddenly uncomfortable.

"Yeah, why-"

"Absolutely not. I refuse." Mathias was taken aback. Honestly he didn't even know what he did. He certainly saw no error in his words, and saw nothing that could drive the other to being so pert. In the end, his inability to cope with changing situations led to his default personality.

"Oh don't be so stupid! You're acting like a girl! Just get on the bed."

"I refuse." This enraged the king. He jumped up and reached down, pulling Nikolai up by his arm, which he had held onto so fondly just moments before. "Let me go!" The shorter male put up quite the fight, writhing and trying to shake the king away from him.

"What's your problem?! I'm nice to you all day, I offer you a nice place to sleep while your room is being fixed, and now I'm giving you the privilege of sleeping in my bed and you just struggle and struggle!" He grabbed Nikolai by the wrists, the two pushing each other back and forth. This continued for a few minutes before Mathias finally just got sick of it, giving one harsh push to Nikolai's chest before the man fell backwards, everything from the knee up on the bed, while his legs dangled slightly over the edge. "See? Now was that-" The spiky-haired man shut his mouth, eyes widening in shock as he observed the Ice Kingdom citizen's practically empty eyes.

It honestly looked like his new 'best friend' was dead.

"L-Lemming… L-Lemming! Lemming!" He placed his hands on the other's shoulders and began shaking him back and forth. "Lemming! Lemming!" He began to desperately yell, trying to awaken his companion. "Please wake up! Please! Lemming! Nik… Nikolai! Wake up!" Tears began to form in the corners of his eyes; he wanted, no he _needed _him to be okay.

"Highness!" Toris busted open the door, "What's wrong?!" He ran over to the bedside, trying to assess the situation to the best of his ability, completely confused. What he did understand, was that Nikolai seemed to be out cold. Immediately, he plucked the boy from the bed, putting him on his shoulders and ready to make a run for the infirmary, before the warrior yawned, making both the king and his loyal servant freeze. "Y-You're…"

"You-re alive!" Mathias pulled the male back into his arms and gave him quite the squeeze. "I was so worried!"

"What are you going on about now?"

"You mean… You just passed out don't you-"

"Passed out? I think I'd remember passing out."

"It's true! I saw it for myself! You looked like a corpse! I-If that's okay to say…" Toris seemed a bit nervous over his own blunt words, but backed up the king. Nikolai furrowed his brows at them both.

"I don't… how did I even?"

"I tried to get you to lay down with me and you just went out like a flame!" the ruler explained, separating from the embrace with the younger male.

"W-Well I _do _recall telling you that I wasn't going to sleep on the same bed as you! You should have listened!" And if he hadn't spent so much time observing the rather interesting being, Mathias wouldn't have even noticed the slight hesitation in his words, or the way he stiffened and broadened his shoulders, as if trying to look bigger and stronger: more intimidating and less weak.

"You…"

"Me nothing, this is entirely your fault." The stone-faced individual frowned even deeper before maneuvering around the king, then once again lying down on the carpet. "Now go to sleep."

The ruthless leader of the Fire Kingdom turned to his foreign subordinate with eyes that spoke, "you don't think…" And got a somber nod in reply.

That night Mathias waited until he knew Nikolai was asleep before gently lifting him and laying him on the mattress. He wasn't sure just how long he had watched his chest fall up and down in steady breaths or how many minutes, maybe hours, he observed the almost angelic face of his sleeping servant. The only thing he's absolutely certain of is that night he had fallen in love with the man, and he wasn't quite sure why, but he felt that as long as Nikolai was safe and as long as he was alive and with him, Mathias would be happy.

So with a delicate kiss to the man's forehead, the great king fell asleep, rather confused with his new feelings, yet accepting of them all the same.

It's times like these in which he remembers the words of his missing, or rather runaway brother: "Once you find something to protect, a person, a pet, a thing, a passion, anything but yourself, guard it with you life, and from that, you will grow, and from that you will become a better man. Give your life purpose and you'll live a long and happy one." In his sleep, he found himself draping his arm over Nikolai's waist, wanting to ensure his safety, well-being, and his closeness.

* * *

WHAT I LACKED IN TIME EFFICIENCY I MADE UP FOR IN CHAPTER LENGTH!

**I WOULD LIKE TO BRING IT TO ATTENTION THAT NEXT CHAPTER I'M GOING TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE FANFICTION TO REFLECTIONS**

And lastly I'd like to state my main sources of inspiration for this fanfiction, just because I feel as if I should. I took inspiration from the book The Bone Doll's twin, the videogame Avalon Code, and a book idea I was going to scrap because it was pretty bad, but I modified it and ta-daa! Here you have it. I actually didn't realize until after I typed awhile how I was barely avoiding sounding like Avatar, what are you going to do, you know?

Either way, _does anyone even read my author notes?_


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